Call and promise
“I will give you shepherds after my own heart who will lead you with knowledge and understanding.”
This is God’s beautiful promise in Jeremiah. Indeed, we need shepherds after God’s heart.
“I will give you shepherds after my own heart who will lead you with knowledge and understanding.”
This is God’s beautiful promise in Jeremiah. Indeed, we need shepherds after God’s heart.
As we prepare to send this peace-themed issue of the magazine to press, all eyes are on Gaza. Israeli tanks sit poised at its northern border, ready to invade. Long lines of transport trucks laden with aid sit at its southern border, as a humanitarian catastrophe unfolds. The people of Gaza, mostly civilians, sit in between—cut off, trapped, at the mercy of outside forces.
At times, it’s shocking, violent and gory. It’s also one of the most compelling pop culture depictions of Christian faith and religion in recent memory.
In the past few weeks, I’ve spoken with five people who have been deeply wounded by church institutions. I’ve met countless more in previous years.
I regularly receive notes from estranged church folk who want a place to belong and have vital contributions to make, but have been pushed aside.
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I don’t get out much.
That’s true for my personal life. My wife and I are homebodies and we jokingly refer to ourselves as “indoor kids”—a nod to the kind of children who choose watching TV or reading a book over getting outside and running around.
If integrity is the currency of change, the Wiederkehr family of Mildmay, Ontario should have a chunk of change to spend.
In a world of compromise, greenwashing and homesteaders Instagramming their idealism, the Wiederkehrs have done far more than most to actually extract themselves from the consumerist machine that treats earth as waste bin and soul as credit card.
The fact that Mennonites are spread throughout much of the world provides the global Anabaptist community with rare access to on-the-ground, first-person comment from both hotspots and forgotten corners of the globe.
When I worked at the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) office in Winnipeg 20 years ago, I took pride in showing up early. Occasionally I even arrived before Norm, the custodian, who turned the lights on at 7 a.m.
Sometimes, I was also the last to leave.
I was doing advocacy with a Cree community and there was no shortage of passion or work.
Maxime Bernier, former Conservative cabinet minister from Quebec, and now leader of the People’s Party of Canada—ran in the federal by-election in southern Manitoba, basing his campaign in the heart of Mennonite country. This image is from a June 10 rally in Winkler, where the big-city francophone politician has won the hearts of a suprising number of Mennonites. (Photo by Will Braun)
I did not plan to write about polarization—I’ve filled my quota on that topic—until Maxime Bernier held a rally near my home. Bernier leads the People’s Party of Canada (PPC) and may be the most prominent populist politician in the country. I couldn’t resist the chance to cross the political divide.
I’m not certain this is a good idea, but I’m going to tell you about four things in this issue of the magazine that don’t sit well with me. If that seems counterintuitive to you, it does to me too. Some intuitions are worth countering.
I’ll circle round at the end to dial back the tension.
I came closer than I’d like to admit.
Three weeks before a family road trip to Ontario, our ex-Hutterite mechanic gave our 2004 Jetta wagon the death sentence. The ensuing car search turned into a troubling family crash course in the psychology of real-life environmental ethics.
With this issue of Canadian Mennonite, Ross W. Muir completes his time with the magazine. As managing editor for almost 18 years, he has undertaken a central piece of the work required to put the magazine together every two weeks.
“I am convinced more so now than ever before that every neighbourhood deserves a Jesus-centred, disciple-making peace presence.” Norm Dyck starts the 2022 Church Planting Resource from Mennonite Church Eastern Canada with that conviction.
It’s not easy to come up with fresh, new material for Easter, so we dug up something nearly 500 years old instead. We’re putting the “Menno” in Canadian Mennonite, literally—the original Menno.
In our feature article, Carol Ann Weaver tells of two Mennonite evangelists who imposed a ban on musical instruments decades ago. It’s tempting to marvel at how utterly unenlightened such a response to perceived wrong now seems. Banning feels so backward.
I prefer books and sky to screens and Hollywood, but the fact that kerchief-clad colony women will appear on-screen at Hollywood’s biggest event creates a moment of opportunity for our church.
Two readers recently wrote to me with concerns. “Over the years that we have received [CM],” wrote a Manitoba couple, “we have detected a constant shift toward liberal theology. . . . de-emphasizing evangelism, Christ’s life and ministry, and his death for our salvation.”
Sometimes I wish the perennial efforts to wring some fresh meaning from amidst the hecticness of Advent would abate. It feels like open season for religious cliches and uninteresting comments about busyness, when all I want is silence.
Bethlehem Bible College sits within walking distance of the birthplace of Jesus and about 200 metres from the eight-metre-high concrete wall that hems in Palestinians such as those who lead and attend the college.
Let me share some wishes for Canadian Mennonite, which are largely my prayer for the overall endeavour of faith. These are topics I’m drawn to and challenges I note.
The pastor of a big rural church asked me to preach about climate. He had read my article, “Grace, guilt and CO2.”
My adventure with Canadian Mennonite began in October 2013, when I stepped into the newly created role of web editor. In March 2017, I became executive editor, teaming up with Tobi Thiessen, who began as publisher.
Movies and TV shows about journalism always catch my attention. How do publishing enterprises work? How do reporters and editors gather information? How are decisions made about the content that the public will see?
Here are questions that readers have about the content you read on the print and web pages of Canadian Mennonite.